


A cliffs Edge

by Atalto



Series: Its a long way down (and I don't know if they'll find me at the bottom) [1]
Category: Big Hero 6 (2014), Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Crossover, Flashbacks, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Kinda, Known character death, M/M, angsty af, gender neutral pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, like a lot of it, paladins visit earth, this is a strange ship but I love it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-26
Updated: 2016-12-26
Packaged: 2018-09-12 08:11:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,128
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9063685
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Atalto/pseuds/Atalto
Summary: When Allura told them all that they were only one wormhole away and they might be able to spend a week or two back on Earth, Shiro's first thought was Bullshit. (The VLD/BH6 crossover that nobody wanted, featuring the ultimate dad ship)





	

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Before we start, just a couple of warnings:  
> 1) No I haven't given up on Holding Onto you, chap 5 will be up shortly
> 
> 2) Tadashi's slightly older in this than he is in Canon
> 
> 3) I pulled the Maths out of my ass, pls say if there's anything wrong with it
> 
> 4) I'm aware this is the weirdest ship in the world, but I'm here for it.
> 
> 5) the flashbacks should be completely in italics, but AO3 rich text editor is being a bitch and I don't understand HTML
> 
> Enjoy!

When Allura told them all that they were only one wormhole away and they might be able to spend a week or two back on Earth, Shiro's first thought was _Bullshit_.

  
It felt like years since he'd briefly returned to Earth after being prisoner to the Galra, and it had been actual years since he'd left Earth; returning felt like a foreign concept. Everyone thought he was dead anyway, the family he had left, his friends...

It almost wasn't worth contemplating.

"Hey, Shiro, isn't this great?" Lance bounded over, dragging Keith over by the arm. Even he had a smile on his face, probably caused by Lance's infectious cheer and the homesickness he hid on a daily basis. On the other side of the control room, Pidge was pawing over a hologram of the route, with Hunk and Coran looking over their shoulder in awe.

  
Instead of an answer, Shiro just smiled.

~

_"Hey, hey, Shiro!" Tadashi's voice carried as he walked across the small field, small machine in tow. They finally met halfway with both teenagers grinning with excitement at Tadashi's new robot.  
This one was smaller and rounder, with a small dispenser at the front and 4 small wheels on the bottom._

_"What does this one do?" Shiro asked curiously, running a thumb over the red cross painted on the side.  
Tadashi grinned. "It's a bandage dispenser," He explained, "Hiro cut himself on a wire again and it's easier to give him this than keep buying him boxes." _

  
_His grin faded as he fell onto the grass. "I'm worried about him."_  
"Why?"  
_"He's skipping more grades, which isn't a bad thing, don't get me wrong, because I skipped 3 grades and met you which was great," Tadashi turned away to glare a hole in the lawn, "but he got stuck in a locker again yesterday because of guys thinking he's some stuck up child prodigy. I'm just sick of it."_

  
_Shiro sat down next to his friend and sighed. "I think the most you can do about it is just keep being there for him."_  
_"Huh?"_  
_"Keith was bullied while my parents were adopting him, so I know what it's like to see a brother bullied." He turned to place a hand on Tadashi's shoulder. "Just be there when he needs you to be, and do as much as you can to prevent it."_

_A breeze had decided to pick up, and the robot swayed in the light wind._

_"That was shit advice Shiro."_  
_"Hey, I never said I was good at this kind of thing!"  
Both boys laughed and Shiro ruffled Tadashi's hair lightly. The breeze died down_.

_"Now come on, are you gonna show this robot to me or not?"_

~

The entrance through the Earth's atmosphere was awful. All 5 Paladins and Coran were braced against their chairs and Allura was trying not to show how the ship was fighting her orders.  
"Who decided it was a good idea to land in a hurricane?" Hunk questioned, face steadily turning green by second.

Pidge laughed dryly. "Blame the weird atmosphere, not Allura's piloting skills." They grimaced as the ship rocked again, and Lance groaned.  
"Can't we just land faster?"  
"Lance, that would only make the rocking worse!" Hunk cried from his chair.  
"Why don't we all just stop complaining?" Keith chipped in calmly. "That includes you, Lance."

"Hey, you're my boyfriend, you're supposed to be on my side!"  
"Shut up Lance."

While the others were arguing, Shiro sat quietly with his head braced back against the chair. The constant squabble wasn't helping his headache, and shudders and jumps were bringing back memories he didn't want to remember.  
I _t's the Galra it's the Galra they've taken Earth and they've found me they've found Keith they've found Tadashi they'll be boarding the ship anytime soon why aren't we running why aren't we fighting why aren't we_ -

"Uh guys? We've landed."

"Thanks Pidge."

~

_Skype rang three times before Tadashi answered._

_"Evening Grampa!"_

_"If this is how you treat your other friends, I'm glad I'm 200 miles away in the Garrison."  
Tadashi's laugh was grainy over the call, but it wasn't long before he was running out of camera view pushing Hiro out of shot with a stern talk and getting an annoyed shout in return._

_"Sorry about that, Hiro's being a little shit again." He chuckled under his breath.  
"So, what was it you wanted to tell me?"_

_"Oh, that? I, um, I need to show you this letter I got..." Where was the letter again? Shiro stood up and looked around, panic rising when the letter wasn't anywhere to be seen._  
"Is it that blobby pixel on the table near the door? Your wifi is awful, you know."

 _It was, in fact, lying on the table near the door, and Shiro had to breath a sigh of relief as he sat back down again._  
"So what is it?" Tadashi asked, leaning forward slightly.  
A breath. "Commander Iverson called me over today after receiving my piloting certificate."  
"You passed then?" Tadashi grinned from the other side of the screen.  
  
_In return, Shiro couldn't help but feel a swell of pride. It was warm in his chest, unabashed and flaring_.

_"That's not the point 'Dashi, stop interrupting."_

_The other man raised an eyebrow but quietened nevertheless._

  
_"Anyway, he handed me this, and congratulated me again." Shiro waved the papers in front of the camera._  
_"I was pretty confused, and Matt - you know Matt Holt, don't you?" Tadashi nodded, so he continued. "He got one of these letters as well, so we decided to open them at the same time."_  
_"What did they say?"_  
_Shiro paused, almost to contain his own excitement._

_"I've been selected to pilot the Kerberos mission next year."_

_The effect was immediate. Tadashi was out of his chair immediately and was leaning on the desk and grinning. He was talking loudly about how proud he was, how Shiro was going to be the best pilot in the Garrison and how the mission was going to be an amazing success. Soon, his aunt and Hiro were in the room as well, and were joining in on the congratulations._

_It was a strange feeling, but one that made the flare in his chest stronger and brighter, like he could do anything_.

" _Enough about me, you mentioned a robot in your E-mail?"_

 _"Oh yeah!" Tadashi began to rummage through his draws and boxes, only to pull out a blueprint detailing what looked like a large marshmallow with arms.  
"I know it looks stupid, but it will change the face of healthcare forever. If it works_."

 _"I'm sure it will 'Dashi_."

~

Allura finally managed to land the ship on a cliff just outside of a large city on the American west coast. She must have known they were going their separate ways for a week, as the city seemed to have good transport to most places. Lance was getting the train south to see his family, whilst Pidge and Hunk were going into the city to contact parents. With no family to go to, Shiro convinced Keith to go with him to San Fransokyo  
After getting Pidge to work out the timetables and then getting them to organise the correct currency after so many years away, Shiro and Keith were on a bus.  
It felt almost nostalgic, picking familiar sights out of the new high rise skyline that ran parallel to the beaches and far stretching ocean. It smelt weird, of dirt and salt, a stark contrast to the chemicals and strange metals of the castle ship.  
Another thing that shocked him at first was that the people didn't stare at him weirdly, didn't tiptoe around him like a science experiment or poke at his arm as if it was dangerous.  
_It was, but he wasn't going to think about that._  
The last thing that hit him was how familiar it was, how his mind filled in blanks with names of buildings and views like his brain wasn't ever tampered by the Galra. Each jump of the bus reminded him of the ship, but with a softer edge, of Lance becoming distracted by Keith again and walking into a wall, of Hunk tripping and spilling food goo all over Coran. It also sent him back to simpler times; day trips in Dad's old truck and Keith whining in the back seat, of getting the tram to the Hamada's house during cadet holidays.

"Hey, Shiro? This is our stop." Keith elbowed his brother in the ribs and pulled him to his feet. "We're going to the Cat Café, right?"  
Once Shiro confirmed this and they were off the bus, it took them both a moment to work out where they actually were. Whilst things had mostly stayed the same, the few changes there were had thrown them completely off guard. Roads had been repaved and familiar houses had been painted over.

It took them about ten minutes to find Cass Hamada's Cat Café, now revamped with a large lucky cat, and Keith didn't think he'd seen Shiro run into a building faster.

What greeted them was Cass screaming bloody murder and gently pushing people out of the café door. After calming her down, the three of them were sat around a table with cups of coffee.  
"So the news was wrong then?" Cass asked after hearing where they had been for the past 3 years, intrigued. "Did the rest of your team survive then?"  
Keith glared into the bottom of his cup. "We haven't found them yet, don't even know if they survived."  
Shiro kicked his brother. "Don't say that."  
"Just pointing out the facts."

It was awkwardly silent after that, the moment seeming to stretch on until the bell of the door sounded.  
"Hiro! You're back from collage early!"  
It took Shiro a moment to connect a name to a face, since Hiro looked so different now. He must have been in his later teens - Shiro recalled he had just turned fourteen when he left on the Kerberos mission. Time had gone fast.

"Well, yeah." Hiro said nonchalantly. "Gogo said she saw Tadashi's dead friend getting off the bus, and I kinda guessed he'd come here first." He turned to Shiro and Keith, and shrugged awkwardly. "Welcome back from the dead, I guess."

In return, Keith gave a wide smile of relief, and Shiro left like hugging the teenager in front of him. "Thanks, it's nice to be back."

Cass had started to collect the cups and Hiro started to move towards the stairs, but there was still no sign of Tadashi. The warmth in his chest had come back from somewhere he couldn't quite place. "Hey, Hiro?" Hiro turned on the first step to face Shiro. "Will Tadashi be back soon? I- well Keith and I- would like to see him?"

Hiro stopped dead on the stair. The silence was terrifying.

It was Cass who spoke first.  
"Shiro, honey, you might want to sit down." He slid into a seat as she passed him and Keith donuts.

"A little while after you left on your mission, there was a fire at a science expo that Tadashi, Hiro and their friends were attending." Cass explained calmly, a sweetness in her voice that sounded misleading.  
The warmth in his chest had crumbled. His heart was pounding.

"Tadashi ran back in to 'do the right fucking thing' because 'no one else would do it'." It was Hiro's turn to tell now, his voice bitter and turbulent in comparison.  
"Is he okay? Hospitalised? Can I visit-?"

Cass shook her head. "They never found a body, sweetie." She paused as the silence in the room grew thicker and thicker. "I'm sorry you had to hear it like this."

Shiro could have sworn he never heard Cass' last words, because the white noise in his ears was getting louder and louder. Next thing he knew was that his face was wet, and his eyes hurt and his cheeks stung. A hand crashed into the table and Keith was rubbing his back with slow circular motions. Tadashi was dead but Tadashi couldn't have been dead, he was just off building robots again and he'd turn up in a minute with perfect hair and that stupid grin on his face, and they'd hug and Shiro would tell him everything he should have said ages ago but didn't because he's a coward.  
Except he wasn't, because Tadashi died two years ago in a building fire.

The last thing he chose to remember was Hiro running up the stairs.

~

_"Surprise!"_

_Shiro certainly was surprised to see Tadashi standing at the bottom of the stairs leading to the changing room_.  
_"What the hell are you doing here 'Dashi? I'm surprised you haven't been drop-kicked out by a security guard yet." Shiro questioned dryly. It took a lot of effort and planning to sneak past Garrison guards, particularly on mission launches_.  
_"Don't worry about it." Tadashi smirked and flashed the small security pass hung around his neck. "I told them I had 'urgent information' for you and they let me walk in._ "

 _At that, Shiro relaxed, slipping his hands in the small pockets in his jacket and raising an eyebrow skeptically. "What is this 'urgent information' then_?"

_Tadashi's face turned completely deadpan. "That you're a nerd," he said first, glaring at Shiro's snort of laughter, "and you should have fun with your nerd friends in space."_

_And then he hugged Shiro, resting his head lightly on the taller mans shoulder and slipping his arms around his waist. The warmth in Shiro's chest was back, stronger than ever as he looped his arms around Tadashi's shoulders, and it spread down him arms and back. This warmth put a dopey smile on his face, and gave him the urge to never let go._

_Unfortunately it had to end, as after what felt like eternities Tadashi pulled away and clapped him on the shoulder gently. "Go rejoin your team, I've gotta' go find Aunt Cass and Hiro."_  
_"They're here too?"  
"Well, yeah, they're not going to miss your big take-off." Tadashi grinned_.

T _here it was again, the unbearable warmth in his chest writing and leaping_.

 _Shit_.

 _Shiro took a deep breath in an attempt to slow his wildly beating heart. It had no effect_.

_"This might fuck up everything, okay? Just," he stuttered, glancing at the concerned look on Tadashi's face, "just feel free to never speak to me again."_

_"Shiro? What's happened? Shiro-?"_

_He was interrupted by Shiro's lips on his, muscled arms around his waist, a warm presence.  
He found that he didn't care_.

 _After a slightly awkward second, Tadashi kissed back, wrapping his arms around Shiro's shoulders without any other care in the world._  
_They broke apart soon after, but for oxygen rather than discomfort._  
_"And why didn't one of us think of that sooner?" Tadashi laughed breathlessly, whereas Shiro remained silent and shocked._  
_"We're both giant dorks who had our heads stuck up our asses?"_  
_"Something like that, probably."_

 _They were interrupted by a crackly voice through Shiro's comms, asking the team to assemble at the boarding tower. Shiro stumbled on his words again, "Sorry, I- I think I need to go."_  
_"Then go." Tadashi stated simply. "I'll be here in two years when you get back, and we'll pick up where we left off."_  
_"Promise?"_  
_"Damnit Shiro, of course I promise."_

 _When Shiro walked over the bridge after all the briefing, he scoured the crowd for the other man, only to find him waving and grinning wildly from ear to ear._  
" _You okay there, Shirogane? You look kind of distracted." Sam Holt questioned when they neared the shuttle.  
"Don't worry Commander, I'm just fine_."

 _When the shuttle eventually left the landing pad, Shiro left Earth replaying memories in his head_.

~

The cemetery Cass pointed them to was a little outside the city, off the beaten track and oddly intimate. Thanks to Hiro showing them, it didn't take too long to find the headstone with Tadashi's name engraved in the top. It suited Tadashi, in a way; modestly small, with no embellishments or decoration, but with fresh flowers of multiple colours placed in every possible location. Keith had managed to buy a bunch of asphodel on the way up, and the small bouquet was placed near the headstone.

"I've always found it weird talking to a stone." Shiro confessed, head tipping back to look into the sky. "What happened to waiting for me, eh?" That was said with a chuckle, albeit a dry one that faded quickly.  
"I can't really say the Kerberos mission was a success, getting kidnapped by aliens really pushes a deadline back. But hey, I escaped, and I'm sorry I couldn't come sooner."  
Shiro turned his head more towards the headstone, glaring at the flowers that juxtaposed the situation with their brightness.  
"You wouldn't believe what I'm doing now." He continued. "Somehow, I'm in a team of intergalactic defenders, Paladins, Allura calls us. It's a bit wild, and I've almost died a couple of times, but I wouldn't swap it for the world."

"You'd probably love it, giant robotic lions and all that."

Shiro keeps talking for a while, blocking out _he's dead he's dead your boyfriend is dead and he never loved you because he's dead_ with descriptions of each team member and Keith's small interruptions when a detail was missed or wrong.

Hiro stepped forwards when the talking drew to an end. "Tadashi... he, he really loved you, ya'know?" The teenager said slowly. "The day you left on the mission, he wouldn't shut up about you."

"You would've treated him right, right?"  
Shiro smiled sadly in return. "I would've, Hiro, don't worry."

With that, the three walked away, bearing goodbyes and promises to return. Hiro said he'd show them the robot Tadashi had built and introduce Keith to their friends. As they left, he pushed a teal jacket into Shiro's arms with a command to keep it. It had a lingering scent of motor oil and that strange cologne Tadashi used to buy from the market; Shiro used to joke it made him an old man.

All that was for another day, and as the week drew to an end and Allura was calling for them all to come back to the Castle Ship, Shiro returned with his head held slightly higher and stories to tell on slow days. The memory of what once was would live on for a while, Shiro would make sure of that.

~

"Is that a new jacket, Shiro?"  
"Wow Pidge, you're the first person to notice." A laugh. "Does it look okay?"  
"Yeah it's really nice! Where did you get it from?"  
"Let's just say an old friend."

**Author's Note:**

> Hmu at Svendidntdieforthis.tumblr.com if you have any questions!
> 
> EDIT 28/12/16: If I wrote a sequel/nobody dies/angsty follow up, would anyone be interested?


End file.
